Firebombing at site of infamous Glasgow gang murder linked to ongoing criminal feud

A firebombing outside a Glasgow garage, where Michael Lyons was gunned down in 2006, is believed to be linked to an ongoing criminal feud.

Emergency services were called to Lambhill Motors, previously known as Applerow Motors, on Balmore Road following reports of a van and two cars on fire at around 1.30am on Tuesday.

The blazes were extinguished by fire crews, and no one was injured.

Detectives believe the torching of the vehicles is linked to an ongoing criminal feud spanning across the central belt.

Emergency services were called to Lambhill Motors, previously known as Applerow Motors, on Balmore Road following reports of a van and two cars on fire at around 1.30am on Tuesday. STV News

The attack occurred just over two hours after a 31-year-old man was slashed with a bladed weapon on Drummohr Avenue in Musselburgh.

Police Scotland taskforce, Operation Portaledge, believes both incidents are linked to the ongoing gang war.

A spokesperson said: “We were made aware of two cars and a van on fire at a garage on Balmore Road in Glasgow around 1.30am on Tuesday, April 7, 2026.

“The fires were extinguished by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and no one was injured.

“The fires are being treated as wilful, and enquiries are ongoing.

“Anyone with information can call 101, quoting reference 0185 of April 7.”

Assassination of Michael Lyons

The deliberate firebombing took place just under two decades after 21-year-old Michael Lyons was shot and killed in a targeted attack at the garage in 2006.

The gangland hit was carried out by Daniels members Raymond Anderson and James McDonald amid a bitter feud which is yet to be resolved. The pair were jailed for 35 years each for their part in the killing.

Crime boss Steven Lyons, who is in custody in Bali, was also shot during the assassination of his younger cousin.

Michael Lyons was assassinated at the garage in 2006. STV News

The gang leader would leave Scotland and eventually settle in Dubai, where multiple authorities, including Europol, believe the group’s senior figures continued to run the operations on the ground as well as an international criminal enterprise.

Four years after the fatal attack, Kevin “Gerbil” Carroll, a Daniels associate, was assassinated in an Asda car park in Robroyston.

Operation Portaledge

Police Scotland’s Operation Portaledge was launched to crack down on serious organised crime after a gang feud spanning the central belt ignited in March 2025.

Homes have been shot at, businesses torched, properties invaded, and machete attacks have taken place over the last year amid escalating violence between the feuding organisations.

In September, four Scots, Steven Lyons, Ross McGill, Stephen Jamieson and Steven Larwood, were allegedly taken into custody by Dubai police as part of the large-scale investigation.

Jamieson was extradited to Scotland, where he faces a total of six charges, including directing someone to commit a serious offence.

Lyons has since been apprehended in Bali as part of a Spanish-led operation, while Larwood is on the run in the Indonesian holiday destination.

Jailed cocaine kingpin Mark Richardson has also been linked to the case, with a group named TMJ issuing a bounty, offering a reward for a violent attack on the Scottish drug lord.

The special task force has arrested a total of 63 people in connection with the organised crime war.